Fall Running Goals

Well, here we are! It’s October 1st and Fall is officially in full swing! Temps are beginning to cool down and it feels GLORIOUS for running. It’s pumpkin spiced latte/apple picking/puffy vest season!

Sorry to jump on the pumpkin bandwagon, but I actually do love the stuff, so I’m pretty excited about it. 🙂

With the changing season, I figure it’s time for some new running goals. I did a post on my running goals for the summer and I think it was really helpful for me to outline what I wanted to work on over the upcoming months. And I ended up achieving my biggest goal, which was to get myself a fancy new 5k PR.

At the age group awards of the Good Times Summer Series with my First Place Plaque!

Now it’s time for some new goals. 🙂

Cross-train at least 3 days a week. With my new gym being quite literally 5 minutes away, I have no excuse to skip workouts. I also have access to tons of machines (it’s a big gym!), so I don’t have to rely on solely using free weights anymore! I’d really like to work on strengthening my abs and upper-body (I think I’ll pretty much save my legs for running.)

Find new groups to run with in the area. There are tons of weekly workouts hosted by different running stores and clubs not too far from me now, and I want to take advantage! Group workouts have always appealed to me (probably because I’m too competitive for my own good). Hopefully, I’ll make some new running buddies!

Find the next state for me and my mom to cross off. While we’ve been focusing on training for Bay State recently, it’s not going to get us closer to our 50 state goal. Life was a little hectic this summer with me starting a new job, but things are finally settling down again, and it’s time for us to start planning. Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware are all possibilities that would be a little closer to home, but it’s going to be trickier to find races up in this area as the weather gets colder.

Incorporate more interval/tempo runs into my workouts. I started doing this this summer since I was so intent on my 5k PR, and I actually really like these workouts! Maybe it’s the former high school track athlete in me, but I actually love to push myself to run faster than feels comfortable.

Focus on my nutrition. In general, I’m pretty good about eating food that’s good for me and doesn’t leave me feeling crappy. I love salads and veggies and will happily eat them for dinner. My biggest weakness though is probably my sweet tooth (I always crave dessert, even when I’m feeling full). I also have a deep love for pizza, but I’m thinking as long as I limit pizza to my Friday nights, I’ll be ok. 🙂

So, that’s what I’ll be working on over the next few months. When New Years rolls around, it’ll be perfect timing for new winter goals!

Do you have any particular goals you’re focused on currently? Pumpkin – yay or nay?

Good goals to have! Mine at the moment are to get back to running from injury. Literally 1 run a week, and I will be happy. Whether or not that happens, (but god I hope it does!) I’m focusing on becoming a more rounded athlete with swimming, cycling, yoga, strength training and stretching. It may be the only silver lining to not being able to run- I’ve got a lot more variety!

Ahhh come do the NJ half marathon in April!!! It’s down by the shore and it’s a pretty flat, fast course. The weather is usually very good 😀 Just throwing that out there 😉 I’ve done that race 3 years in a row now and I’m definitely going back for a 4th – it’s one of my favorites! Love your goals and I think it’s so great you’re doing so much cross-training. And hell yes to the pumpkin 😀